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25 April 2013

Bill paves way for streamlined conveyancingMySunshinecoast - Australia
Queenslanders will enjoy more streamlined, simplified conveyancing after legislation to adopt a national electronic conveyancing system was passed in State Parliament today.

Minister for Natural Resources and Mines Andrew Cripps said the Electronic Conveyancing National Law (Queensland) Bill 2012 would allow businesses, solicitors and the general public to benefit from participating in a consistent national e-conveyancing system.

“The seamless national e-conveyancing system saves time and ensures greater certainty that settlement will take place as scheduled,” Mr Cripps said.

“It will reduce the potential for errors in documents and cheques and other problems that lead to failed settlements, which cause inconvenience and often additional expenses for members of the public, their solicitors and financiers.MySunshinecoast

Housing inertia hobbling economyIolProperty - South Africa
The South African economy would not recover unless there was a recovery in the housing market because building was an engine for growth and wealth creation, BMI-Building Research Strategy Consulting principal consultant Llewellyn Lewis said yesterday.

However, mortgage advances in current values dropped 57 percent from R440 billion to R218bn between 2007 and 2009 and it could take a decade or more for mortgage advances in current values to reach the same level as the peak in 2007, Lewis said at a building, construction and property industry forum in Johannesburg.

Nonetheless, mortgage advances had increased by 314 percent between 2000 and last year, he said.

Lewis referred to the structural shift in finance, with banks growing unsecured lending ahead of home loans and asset finance. This, he said, was because unsecured lending was more profitable, while new regulations discouraged banks from taking on long-term loans.IolProperty

Residential building statisticsAbsa - South AfricaStrong building activity evident in some categories of new housing
Building activity in the segment for flats and townhouses showed some strong growth in the first two months of 2013, with low growth evident in the segment for larger houses. In general the planning phase, as depicted by building plans approved for new housing, contracted by a small margin up to February, while the construction phase benefitted from double-digit growth in the categories of houses smaller than 80m² and flats and townhouses.

The real value of plans approved for new residential buildings was up by R592,3 million, or 14,2% year-on-year (y/y), to R4,76 billion in the first two months of the year. The real value of residential buildings constructed came to R3,38 billion in the same period, which was R524,6 million, or 18,4% y/y, more than a year ago.Absa Building Statistics Feb 2013